Data Reading Device and Method Thereof, and Data Transmission Device and Method Thereof
A data reading device that transmits power to a data transmission device and reads data transmitted from the data transmission device is provided. The data reading device includes: a first electrode, forming a first coupling capacitance with the data transmission device; a second electrode, forming a second coupling capacitance with the data transmission device; a control circuit, coupled to the first electrode and the second electrode, configured to provide the first electrode with a first reference voltage and the second electrode with a second reference voltage to cause a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode to vary with time, and to detect charge changes of the first coupling capacitance and the second capacitor; and a determination unit, coupled to the control circuit, configured to determine the data according to the charge changes.
This application claims the benefit of Taiwan application Serial No. 103102662, filed Jan. 24, 2014, the subject matter of which is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates in general to a data reading device and a method thereof as well as a data transmission device and a method thereof, and more particularly, to a data reading device and a method thereof as well as a data transmission device and a method thereof adapted to read and transmit data through capacitance coupling.
2. Description of the Related Art
Touch devices have become prevalent nowadays. One implementation of the touch function is capacitive touch control. The capacitive touch control features fast and sensitive response as well as multi-touch, and is adopted to realize capacitive touch panels by most commercial mobile devices such as tablet computers and cell phones. With the prevalence of capacitive touch panels, devices adopting capacitive touch panels may become even more popular if new applications such as data transmission can be developed for capacitive touch panels.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe invention is directed to a data reading device and a method thereof as well as a data transmission device and a method thereof adapted to read and transmit data through capacitance coupling.
The present invention discloses a data reading device configured to transmit power to a data transmission device and read data transmitted from the data transmission device through capacitance coupling. The data reading device includes: a first electrode, forming a first coupling capacitance with the data transmission device; a second electrode, forming a second coupling capacitance with the data transmission device; a control circuit, coupled to the first electrode and the second electrode, configured to provide the first electrode with a first reference voltage and the second electrode with a second reference voltage to cause a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode to vary with time, and to detect charge changes of the first coupling capacitance and the second capacitor; and a determination unit, coupled to the control circuit, configured to determine the data according to the charge changes.
The present invention further discloses a capacitive touch device configured to transmit power to a data transmission device and read data transmitted from the data transmission device through capacitance coupling. The capacitive touch device includes: a plurality of detection units; a control circuit, coupled to the detection units, configured to provide a first part of the detection units with a first reference voltage and a second part of the detection units with a second reference voltage to cause a voltage difference between the first reference voltage and the second reference voltage to vary with time, and to detect charge changes of the first part of the detection units and the second part of the detection units; and a determination unit, coupled to the control unit, configured to determine the data according to the charge changes.
The present invention further discloses a data transmission device adapted to receive power from a data reading device and transmit data to the data reading device. The data transmission device includes: a first electrode, forming a first coupling capacitance with the data reading device; a second electrode, forming a second coupling capacitance with the data reading device; a rectifier, coupled to the first electrode and the second electrode, configured to generate a voltage according to a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode; a switch element, coupled between the first electrode and the second electrode; and a control unit, coupled to the rectifier and the switch element, configured to receive the voltage and to control an on/off status of the switch element to change charges of the first electrode and the second electrode. The data reading device receives the data through detecting changes in the charges.
The present invention further discloses a capacitive touch device adapted to transmit data to a data reading device. The capacitive touch device includes: a plurality of detection units; a control circuit, coupled to the detection units, configured to cause potentials of a first part of the detection units and a second part of the detection units to change in a predetermined period according to the data to change charges of the first part of the detection units and the second part of the detection units. The data reading device receives the data through detecting the charge changes.
The present invention further discloses a data reading method adapted to transmit power to a data transmission device and read data transmitted from the data transmission device. The data reading method includes: providing a first electrode, the first electrode forming a first coupling capacitance with the data transmission device; providing a second electrode, the second electrode forming a second coupling capacitance with the data transmission device; providing the first electrode with a first reference voltage; providing the second electrode with a second reference voltage; causing a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode to vary with time; detecting charge changes of the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance; and generating a data reading result according to the charge changes.
The present invention further discloses a data transmission method adapted to receive power from a data reading device and transmit data to the data reading device. The data transmission method includes: providing a first electrode, the first electrode forming a first coupling capacitance with the data reading device; providing a second electrode, the second electrode forming a second coupling capacitance with the data reading device; and causing potentials of the first electrode and the second electrode to change in a predetermined period according to the data to change charges of the first electrode and the second electrode. The data reading device receives the data through detecting changes in the charges.
The data reading device and the method thereof as well as the data transmission device and the method thereof are adapted to transmit and receive data through capacitance coupling. In addition to being directly applied to current common capacitive touch panels to provide devices adopting the capacitive touch panels with short-distance data transmission and reception functions, the present invention may further be extensively applied to data carriers without active power sources, e.g., smart cards, ATM cards and credit cards, and data readers without touch panels.
The above and other aspects of the invention will become better understood with regard to the following detailed description of the preferred but non-limiting embodiments. The following description is made with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Technical terms of the application are based on the general definition in the technical field of the application. If the application describes or explains one or some terms, definitions of the terms are based on the description or explanation of the application.
The present invention discloses a data reading device and a method thereof as well as a data transmission device and a method thereof adapted to transmit and receive data through capacitance coupling. In possible implementation, one skilled person in the art may choose equivalent elements or steps to implement the disclosure based on the disclosure of the application. That is, the implementation of the disclosure is not limited in the embodiments disclosed in the disclosure. Further, a part of the elements included in the data reading device and the data transmission device of the disclosure are individually known elements. Without affecting the full disclosure and possible implementation of the device, details of the known elements are omitted. Further, the data reading method and the data transmission method may be implemented by the data reading device and the data transmission device of the disclosure or an equivalent device. Without affecting the full disclosure and possible implementation of the method of the disclosure, the description of the method focuses on the steps of the method instead of hardware.
Again referring to
As previously stated, the control circuit 112 provides the electrode 114 and the electrode 116 with a voltage difference, which is equivalently applying a voltage difference to two ends of the above equivalent capacitance. Given that the voltage difference stays unchanged, the change in the equivalence capacitance value causes a change in the total charge stored in the equivalent capacitor. The control circuit 112 receives the data transmitted from the data transmission device 220 through detecting the change in the charges (i.e., the change in the capacitance value).
It should be noted that, the present invention is directly applicable to an electronic device with a touch panel. In fact, each of the small electrodes 711 in
In step S810, a first electrode is provided, and the first electrode is connected to a first reference voltage. The first electrode may be one complete piece of metal plate or a conductive material. Alternatively, the first electrode may be formed by a plurality of adjacent but non-contact metal or conductive materials, e.g., a plurality of detection units of a capacitive touch panel, with each of the detection units being a transparent conductive material.
In step S820, a second electrode is provided, and the second electrode is connected to a second reference electrode. The method for forming the second electrode is the same as that of the first electrode. The first electrode and the second electrode form a first coupling capacitance and a second coupling capacitance with the data transmission device, respectively. Power on the first electrode and the second electrode may be transmitted to the data transmission device via capacitance coupling. Thus, the data transmission device is operable even without an active power source (e.g., a battery).
In step S830, a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode is caused to vary with time. In order to accumulate charges on the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance, a voltage difference is caused between the first electrode and the second electrode, and is caused to change periodically. For example, the voltage difference repeatedly changes between a first difference and a second difference.
In step S840, changes in the charges of the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance are detected. When the data transmission device transmits data, the capacitance values of the equivalent capacitors formed by the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance are caused to change, which indirectly leads to changes in the charges accumulated on the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance. Therefore, through detecting the charge changes of the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance, the data transmitted from the data transmission device can be learned.
In step S850, a data reading result is generated according to the charge changes. The charge changes reflect the data transmitted from the data transmission device. For example, the data transmitted represents a logic signal 1 when the period in which the amount of charges is lower for over a predetermined period, or else the data represents a logic signal 0. Multiple logic signals may then compile into meaningful data.
More specifically, when step S810 and step S820 utilize a capacitive touch panel as electrodes, the first part of the detection units of the touch panel serves as the first electrode and the second part serves as the second electrode. Further, areas of the first part and the second part may be dynamically adjusted according to the data reading result of step S850 to further change configuration directions and/or areas of the electrodes to enhance the capacitance coupling efficiency.
In step S910, a first electrode is provided, and a first coupling capacitance is formed by the first electrode and the data reading device. The first electrode may be one complete piece of metal plate or a conductive material. Alternatively, the first electrode may be formed by a plurality of adjacent but non-contact metal or conductive materials, e.g., a plurality of detection units of a capacitive touch panel, with each of the detection units being a transparent conductive material.
In step S920, a second electrode is provided, and a second coupling capacitance is formed by the second electrode and the data reading device. The method for forming the second electrode is the same as that of the first electrode.
In step S930, a capacitor is used to couple the first electrode and the second electrode. This capacitor is connected in series with the first electrode and the second electrode, and has an equivalent capacitance value smaller than those of the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance after being connected in series based on characteristics of capacitors connected in series. Further, this capacitor may be a parasitic capacitor between the first electrode and the second electrode, or an additionally provided capacitor.
In step S940, a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode is rectified to generate a supply voltage. This step may convert the voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode by a rectifier to form a direct current voltage as a power source.
In step S950, according data to be transmitted, potentials of the first electrode and the second electrode are caused to change in a predetermined period to change charges of the first electrode and the second electrode. When the potentials of the first electrode and the second electrode are changed, e.g., when the two are connected to each other or when the two are connected to a same potential, it is equivalently bypassing the capacitor provided by step S930 in a way that the first coupling capacitance and the second capacitor are directly connected in series. As a result, the equivalent capacitance values of the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance are changed to further change the charges on the first electrode and the second electrode. Through detecting the charge changes on the equivalent capacitors, the data reading device may learn the data transmitted.
One person skilled in the art can understand details and possible implementation variations of the methods in
While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements and procedures, and the scope of the appended claims therefore should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements and procedures.
Claims
1. A data reading device, configured to read data transmitted from a data transmission device, the data reading device comprising:
- a first electrode, forming a first coupling capacitance with the data transmission device;
- a second electrode, forming a second coupling capacitance with the data transmission device;
- a control circuit, configured to provide the first electrode with a first reference voltage and the second electrode with a second reference voltage, and to detect charge changes of the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance; and
- a determination unit, configured to determine the data according to the charge changes.
2. The data reading device according to claim 1, wherein the data reading device comprises a capacitive touch panel comprising a plurality of detection units, the first electrode comprises a first part of the detection units, and the second electrode comprises a second part of the detection units.
3. The data reading device according to claim 2, wherein the control circuit dynamically determines a range of the first part and a range of the second part according to a data reading result of the determination unit.
4. The data reading device according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit renders a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode to vary with time.
5. A data transmission device, configured to transmit data to a data reading device, the data transmission device comprising:
- a first electrode, forming a first coupling capacitance with the data reading device;
- a second electrode, forming a second coupling capacitance with the data reading device;
- a rectifier, coupled to the first electrode and the second electrode, configured to generate a voltage according to a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode;
- a switch element, coupled between the first electrode and the second electrode; and
- a control unit, coupled to the rectifier and the switch element, configured to receive the voltage and to control an on/off status of the switch unit to change charges of the first electrode and the second electrode.
6. The data transmission device according to claim 5, further comprising:
- a capacitor, coupled between the first electrode and the second electrode, configured to connect the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance in series.
7. The data transmission device according to claim 6, wherein the data transmission device comprises a plurality of detection units, the first electrode comprises a first part of the detection units, and the second electrode comprises a second part of the detection units, and a data reading device receives the data through detecting the charge changes.
8. A data reading method, applied to a data reading device, for reading data transmitted from a data transmission device, the data reading method comprising:
- providing a first reference voltage to a first electrode of the data reading device and providing a second reference voltage to a second electrode of the data reading device, the first electrode forming a first coupling capacitance with the data transmission device, the second electrode forming a second coupling capacitance with the data transmission device;
- detecting charge changes of the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance; and
- generating a data reading result according to the charge changes.
9. The data reading method according to claim 8, applied to a capacitive touch panel, the capacitive touch panel comprising a plurality of detection units, wherein the step of providing the first electrode selects a first part of the detection units to form the first electrode, and the step of providing the second electrode selects a second part of the detection units to form the second electrode.
10. The data reading method according to claim 9, further comprising:
- dynamically determining a range of the first part and a range of the second part according to the data reading result.
11. The data reading method according to claim 8, wherein a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode varies with time.
12. A data transmission method, applied to a data transmission device, for transmitting data to a data reading device, the data transmission method comprising:
- forming a first coupling capacitance between a first electrode of the data transmission device and the data reading device;
- forming a second coupling capacitance between a second electrode of the data transmission device and the data reading device.
13. The data transmission method according to claim 12, further comprising:
- providing a capacitor, the capacitor being coupled between the first electrode and the second electrode, and configured to connect the first coupling capacitance and the second coupling capacitance in series.
14. The data transmission method according to claim 12, applied to a capacitive touch panel, the capacitive touch panel comprising a plurality of detection units, wherein the step of providing the first electrode selects a first part of the detection units to form the first electrode, and the step of providing the second electrode selects a second part of the detection units to form the second electrode, and the data reading device receives the data through detecting the charge changes.
15. The data transmission method according to claim 12, further comprising:
- rectifying a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode to generate a voltage.
16. The data transmission method according to claim 12, wherein potentials of the first electrode and the second electrode vary in a predetermined period according to the data to change charges of the first electrode and the second electrode.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 23, 2015
Publication Date: Jul 30, 2015
Patent Grant number: 10044411
Inventors: Kai-Ting Ho (Zhubei City), Guo-Kiang Hung (Zhubei City)
Application Number: 14/603,465